Winter Photo Scavenger Hunt - 2024

Eileen is hosting the Winter Photo Scavenger Hunt (WPSH), which runs from January 1, 2024 to March 31, 2024.  It is time to post the first set of photos for the first link up!

These are the photos I've taken so far; the full list of prompts is at the end of the post.

3. Entwined - I took a couple of photos for this prompt of vines entwined around each other and other plants:

Asparagus Fern Entwined Around the Yucca Plant

Star Jasmine Vine Entwined Around Itself

But, ultimately, nothing says "entwined" more than the stems of my old rosemary bush, wouldn't you agree? 

3. Entwined: Rosemary Stems

5. Bent wire - One of several pieces of bent wire on my chain link gate:

5. Bent Wire

12. Something living - Mama Cat; she's used up several of her nine lives, but, she's still alive and kicking!

12. Something Living: Mama Cat

13. A cloud formation - After several days of rain, we had a sunny day with puffy white clouds (and then, it started to rain, again!)

13. A Cloud Formation

14.  Grass(es):  Lemon grass growing in a pot and a clump of overgrown grass in the garden

14a: Lemon Grass

14b: A Clump of Overgrown Grass

16. A red car or truck - A red car, conveniently parked in the neighborhood

16. A Red Car

18. A plate or bowl of potatoes cooked your favorite way - hash browns (with a bit of bell pepper tossed in)

18.  A Plate of Potatoes: Hash Browns

20.  One of the things listed in the song, My Favourite Things from The Sound of Music: Whiskers on kittens 

20.  One of my Favorite Things: Whiskers on Kittens

Or, maybe that should be "Whiskers on Kitties" as we are not exactly a kitten, anymore!

"Hey!  Are you calling me an old cat?
 I'm a kitten at heart."

Thank you for hosting the WPSH, Eileen.

If anyone else wishes to participate in the WPSH, it doesn't end till end of March, so you have plenty of time to join in the fun!

2024 Winter Photo Scavenger Hunt

1. On the shelf
2. Abstract
3. Entwined
4. Light and dark
5. Bent wire
6. A sign
7. A tool or tools
8. An airplane
9. Inside out
10. An everyday object photographed from an unusual angle
11. Up high
12. Something living
13. A cloud formation
14. Grass(es)
15. Begins with X, Y, or Z
16. A red car or truck
17. The letter T ... nothing else, just the letter
18. A plate or bowl of potatoes, cooked your favourite way
19. A fence
20. One of the things listed in the song, My Favourite Things from the Sound of Music (I've printed the lyrics at the end of this post)

Alt A. The oldest coin in your house

Alt B. A board game

Alt C. Free choice

Mid-Week Catch Up

A New Face Peeking at Me!

Isn't it just adorable?  I've been seeing a new calico cat hanging around in the garden this past week or so.  It seems rather wary and ready to run and hide in the crawl space under the house at the slightest movement, but, the lure of Mama Cat's bowl of kibble is hard to resist!  I was able to photograph it through the sliding glass door, on Tuesday:

Calico Cat

Mama Cat, however, is not having any of it!  She, who can't be bothered to chase away Chicken Little, chased the calico cat before it could so much as get a bite of kibble.  Last week, I put a separate bowl of kibble for the calico cat; I might have to continue to do that.  I don't know whose cat it is or if it is a stray.  At first, I thought it might belong to the new neighbors, as I've seen a cat sitting in one of their window sills, but, I think that cat is bigger and has different markings.  I do hope that it isn't a complete stray!

Monday was a productive day.  In addition to ordering and picking up the groceries, I changed the bed sheets, did a load of laundry, dusted the living room and dining area, renewed two of my library books, took the trash cans to the curb, emptied the dish washer, wiped down the kitchen counters, and started cleaning the fridge.  I had a banana and bread for brunch; for dinner, I cooked a smoked sausage with onions, bell pepper, and tomato and had it with rice.

On Tuesday, I put away the dried laundry,  brought in the emptied trash cans, finished cleaning the fridge, did a little weeding in the front garden, visited a bit with neighbor S who saw me in the front garden and called me over to show me that she and her mother had planted the pomegranate and fig plants she had bought, cleaned the litter box, took the kitchen compost to the garden, chatted on the phone with aunt C, with friend R, and with former neighbor T.  

Brunch was a Fuyu persimmon, a banana, and the last of the bakery bread I bought on Friday.  At tea time, I ate two leftover American style pancakes with leftover lentil curry.  Dinner was the last of the sauteed chicken and rice.

This week's meal plan:

Brunches: Bananas and buttered bread, deli meat sandwiches, scrambled eggs and toast with or without bacon, peanut butter toast, maybe grilled cheese sandwiches?

Dinners: Smoked sausage stirfry with rice; sauteed chicken and rice; chicken curry with cucumber salad and rice; leftovers

Snacks/desserts: Fresh fruits (apples, oranges, pomegranate, a single passionfruit picked off the vine), bread pudding (I found a lot of bread ends/heels in the fridge when I cleaned it out!), yogurt

I am grateful for:

- Sunny days
- Chats with family, friends, and neighbors
- Working appliances
- Being able to order things online and have them delivered to the door
- Garden fruit

My joyful activities have included reading, crocheting, and, as always, video chatting with my daughter.

Plans for Wednesday include tending to the garden with M, dusting the family room and my bedroom, and vacuuming.

What are your plans for Wednesday?

February Grocery Shopping Part 1

February Groceries

I ordered and picked up groceries, today (Monday).  I had better luck with my order, this time, although I made a few changes to the list of groceries I ordered and I forgot to order the gallon containers of water!  I also specified substitutions to make it easier (although they substituted only one item and it wasn't what I had specified!  LOL!  I think it was an honest mistake, picking one each of two different varieties of smoked sausage instead of two of the same variety; I'm fine with that.)  I changed my mind and didn't order a single item on their "mix and match: buy 5 and get $1 off each item" sale, this time.

I use a store loyalty card which gives me discounts, digital coupons, and customized "best customer" coupons to get the best deals and I stock up when things go on sale.  This time, the big stock up item was chicken at $0.99/lb.  My splurge item was the frozen breaded shrimp at $7.99 for 32 oz.  According to the package, a serving size is supposed to be 3 oz. or about 6 shrimp; I usually eat more than 6 shrimp and a package makes about six servings for me, which comes out to about $1.34 per serving and, in my opinion, that is a very affordable splurge!  

I know that my readers are not judgmental, but, just in case anyone is wondering about the frosted cornflakes, I got it free with a coupon and I don't turn down offers of free food from the grocery store!  I don't eat it as it contains too much sugar for me; instead, it will be added to the items I will be donating to the food bank when the postal service holds their annual food drive in May.

Here's what I bought and how much I spent:

1 cucumber, reg. price $0.89, with $0.40 off coupon = $0.49

3 bananas, 1.05 lbs. @ $0.68/lb. = $0.72

2 packs (8 oz. each), pork sausage, reg. price $2.49@; on sale with coupon for $0.99@ = $1.99

2 packs (14 oz. each) smoked sausages, reg. price $5.49@, on sale with coupon for $2.99@ = $5.98
(they gave me 1 regular smoked sausage and one hot smoked sausage; that was the only substitution)

2 trays chicken thighs, 6.28 lbs. total, reg. price $2.49/lb. on sale for $0.99/lb. = $6.23

1 bag (32 oz.) frozen breaded shrimp, reg. price $12,99, on sale for $9.99, with coupon = $7.99

1 box cereal, 13.5 oz., reg. price $4.99, free with coupon = $0.00

1 box pancake mix, 32 oz., reg. price $3.29, on sale = $2.50 

1 loaf sandwich bread = $1.79

1/2 gal. milk = $2.69

10 cans tuna in water, reg. price $1.29, on sale @$1 = $10.00
(I'm including this in my grocery budget, even though I will be sharing this tuna with a certain kitty cat!)

Total spent = $40.36

According to the receipt, the original/regular cost of the groceries I bought = $72.65
The amount I saved with coupons and sales = $32.29

My monthly grocery budget (food items, only) = $100
(I am starting out with a new grocery budget in February because the January budget included almsgiving food purchases and things for my daughter to take back with her; not carrying over any funds from January.)

Balance remaining in the February grocery budget = $100 - $40.36 = $59.64

I froze the sausages and the breaded shrimp. At the same time, I took out the package of smoked sausage I already had in the freezer and made a stir fry with it (with onions, bell peppers, and tomatoes, all from the freezer) for dinner, served with rice.

I will portion out the trays of chicken, tomorrow.  I will make a curry with one tray and freeze some of the curry.  I will probably sauté the other tray of chicken and freeze most of that, too.

As always, I am grateful to be able to buy the groceries I want.

How are you coming along with your grocery shopping and grocery budget, this month?

Superbowl Sunday

Napping Under the Lemon Tree

It was sunny with a high of 62F.  Mama Cat left her box to nap under the lemon tree for a change.  I spent a relaxed morning replying to blog comments and reading.  

In the afternoon, I settled down to watch the Superbowl.  The team I had chosen to cheer for led in the first half of the game, but, they lost in overtime.  It was a good game, though, and I thought the teams were well matched.  I enjoyed the game and the commercials aired during the game.  I started on another crochet project, using some leftover yarn, while I watched the game.  But, I am going to have to buy more yarn to finish the project as I don't have enough leftover yarn!  

Later in the evening, after the game was over, I watched some TV, chatted with one of my cousins, read a few blogs, and video chatted with my daughter.

I had a cold cuts (roast beef) sandwich for brunch; dinner was leftover rice and chicken.

On Sunday, I was grateful for:

- Hot water on tap/the luxury of a hot shower
- Sunny days
- Being able to watch TV
- Being able to keep in touch with family and friends
- Being able to crochet and knit

Sunday's joyful activities included watching the Superbowl and crocheting.

Monday's To Do List:

- Change bed sheets

- Load of laundry (bed sheets/towels)

- Dust living room & dining area

- Clean the fridge

- Take trash cans to the curb for Tuesday trash pick up
- Order groceries 

- Pick up groceries (unless the store cancels the order, again!)
- Renew library books

How was your Sunday?  What are your plans for Monday?

Sunny Saturday

The Latest Library Book

Saturday was sunny with a high of 62F.  But, I hadn't put the heater on at night, so, the house was a chilly 54F when I woke up!  Needless to say, I put the heater on and kept it on at 65F all day!  

I called my half-sister and chatted with her in the morning.  Then, I did a load of laundry and went ahead and dried it in the dryer, rather than hanging it up to dry inside the house.  It felt like a guilty luxury to use the dryer, especially with the heater on!  But, I wanted to get it all done right away without having laundry hanging all day.  Then, I put it all away, taking care to turn the hangers to the regular side as I returned the washed garments to the closet.

I finished reading the library book shown above, earlier in the week.  It is a novel (fiction) about a man who kept all the things he found that other people had lost, dropped, discarded, misplaced. or left behind.  Anthony Peardew was an author of short stories, who, having lost both his fiancée and a special medallion she had given him, began to collect and keep things he found, a button, a puzzle piece, a hair tie, and even a biscuit tin filled with what appeared to be the cremated remains of someone that had been left on a train seat, keeping meticulous notes about each object, describing the object, recording where it was found, and when.  When he died, he left his house and his collection of lost objects to his assistant, Laura, with the request that she tried to find the former owners of the objects and returned the objects to them.  The story then focuses on Laura and her attempts to find the owners of the lost objects.  There is also, a secondary story woven in between, of Eunice, who also finds a shiny object in the street, on the day she went for a job interview and decides to keep it.  

At first, I found the style of writing a bit confusing as there were stories within stories, especially when it came to the individual objects.  I was also unfamiliar with some of the slang terms used by the British author and I had to look up what Estuary English was although I was able to gather that it was a form of pronunciation from the context.  

However, I enjoyed the book and the stories told within it, and how various, seemingly disparate, threads came together at the end.  

I spent a good portion of the afternoon reading another library book, "On Gold Mountain" by Lisa See, about the story of her family's experiences as Chinese Americans, starting with her great grandfather who, as an herbalist, came over from China to treat and tend to the Chinese who worked to build the Central Pacific Railroad.

Brunch was two slices of bread, toasted.  Dinner was breaded frozen shrimp, fried, with homemade peach chutney as a dipping sauce.  Yogurt with palm treacle and half a granola bar for dessert.  I'll probably eat some fruit for a snack before I go to bed.

On Saturday, I was grateful for:

- A sunny day
- Working appliances, including the heater, washer, and dryer
- Library books
- Being able to read
- Phone calls and video chats with family, exchanging emails with friends

Saturday's joyful activity was reading.

Plans for tomorrow include reading, maybe another load of laundry, and watching a football game!  LOL.  The Green Bay Packers were my team (I had spent six years in Green Bay and that's where I learned about American football), but, they lost to the San Francisco 49ers.  So, since I am now in California, I'll cheer for the team from California!  

How was your Saturday?  What are your plans for Sunday?  Will you be watching the Superbowl?

Doctor's Appointments and Earthquakes on Friday

A Bowl of Crocheted Flowers

My daughter crocheted a birthday gift for one of her friends, following a pattern she found online.  At first glance, it looks like a bowl of crocheted flowers.  But, if you take the flowers out of the crocheted bowl and open them out, they become: 

Coasters!

She also crocheted a key chain coin purse:

Key Chain Coin Purse

Friday was mostly sunny.  I left the house just before noon to go to my appointment with the oncology nurse practitioner and got to the clinic (in downtown Los Angeles) 15 minutes before my appointed time.  I had to wait for another half an hour or so before I was actually seen, but, that was okay.  I had taken a book with me to read and I spent the time reading.  I had a good check up and the blood test results were mostly good.  Then, I had to wait a little longer before I received my injection.

I was in the examination room when I felt the shaking; apparently, there was a 4.6 earthquake a few miles north of Malibu!  Fortunately, no damage from the earthquake, according to the news.

It was about 3:00 p.m. when I left the clinic (parking cost $12).  On the way home, I stopped at a small Armenian grocery store and bakery to buy a loaf of their bread:

Bakery Bread

They only had one loaf of bread left and I was happy to pay $3 for it.  Their bread reminds me of the type of bread we used to have in Sri Lanka when I was growing up.  It was just after 4:00 p.m. when I got home.  There were messages from one of my cousins and from my aunt, sent after the earthquake, asking me if I was OK (aunt had called three times!)  So, I called them back to reassure them that I was OK and had been at a doctor's appointment.  

By then, I was hungry!  I hadn't eaten anything all day (I had a cup of tea before I left in the morning and, although I took some cookies with me for a snack, I didn't eat them).  So, I cut myself a couple of slices of the bread and had a slice with some deli meats/cold cuts I had in the fridge.  I had the other slice with some dhal that I warmed up.  Bread and dhal is comfort food for me!

M arrived to tend to the garden shortly after that and he divided up and repotted the red aloe plant.  We decided to wait until the aloe vera plant flowered to divide and repot it.

On Friday, I was grateful for:

- A good appointment with the oncology nurse practitioner
- Mostly good blood test results
- Access to medical care and having health insurance
- A safe drive to the clinic and back
- M's help with the garden
- It was a small earthquake and there was no damage from it

Today's joyful activity was video chatting with my daughter.

Plans for tomorrow include reading and doing some laundry.

How was your Friday?  What are your plans for Saturday?

Out of Stock!

"No Tuna!"

What do you do when you put in an order for groceries and the store contacts you to say that they need to cancel your order  because they "ran into issues at our end"?  Because that is just what happened today (Thursday)!

The last time I bought groceries was on January 15, a little over three weeks ago.  I was out of fresh milk (had been for some time) and yesterday, I finished my loaf of bread (although I have a collection of the bread ends/crusts/heels, or whatever you call them).  Chicken was on sale at my stock up price of $0.99/lb. and there were other sale items to be had with digital coupons, etc., so I thought this week would be a good week to order groceries!

This morning, I put together a list of groceries: bread, milk, chicken, smoked sausage, canned tuna, bananas, refrigerated crescent rolls dough to try a recipe that was in the store's own online magazine, the box of free cereal to redeem the latest "best customer" coupon they sent me, a carton of ice cream, a can of ready to serve soup to make sure I had at least one item over 5 items required to qualify for the $1 off per item (still smarting from the time I ordered exactly 5 items and they said they were out of one of the items and charged me the full price on the other items without offering a substitute), and two gallon sized bottles of water to restock my emergency supplies.  Shortly after I submitted the order, I received a text from Ricky, who often brings my groceries to my car, stating that the store was out of several items I had ordered, too many to offer substitutions, and his manager had suggested cancelling my order!  Sigh.  I texted back to confirm that there would be no charge and said to go ahead and cancel the order.  Then, I received the email confirmation that the order was cancelled due to "issues at our end".  

I suppose I should have anticipated problems.  For one thing, this weekend there is the Superbowl and people are probably having Superbowl parties and things are probably flying off the shelves.  For another thing, we've had rain storm after rain storm and people probably stocked up on groceries in anticipation of the storms and the rain probably disrupted supplies from reaching the grocery stores due to flooded roads and other hazards.  It doesn't take a pandemic to deplete store shelves, especially if one lives in an area where one experiences earthquakes and major storms.  

Which is why I never let my pantry and freezer get down below a certain level and always keep my emergency supplies well stocked.  I might be out of fresh milk, but, I have frozen milk and canned milk.  I might be out of bread, but, I do have flour and yeast (although the yeast is expired!) and I can make roti.  

Maybe the situation would not have arisen if I had shopped in person.  I would have been able to make some substitutes for the items I wanted.  However, if they were out of milk or bread or the chicken that was on sale, then, shopping in person wouldn't have helped!  

I will try ordering more groceries on Monday - the sale prices will still be in effect until Tuesday.  If I wait until Monday, it would have been four weeks since I last bought groceries!  Or, maybe I'll change the pick up location to another store and have better luck, although I like my local store.  

It was a sunny morning, but, it started to rain, again, in the evening.  After I tried to order groceries and failed, I replied to blog comments (thank you, everyone, who reads and comments; I really appreciate it), read and commented on a few other blogs, vacuumed the living room and dining area, paid some bills, ran the dishwasher, and had a nice video chat with my stepfather's sister.  Aunt S is in her early 90s and experiencing some health issues, but, she is as sharp as a tack!  Later, I video chatted with my daughter.

Brunch on Thursday was pancakes with the last of the mackerel curry gravy and dhal, followed by one with pancake syrup!  For dinner, I had:

Thursday Dinner: Chicken and Rice

Sauteed chicken thighs (from the freezer) reheated and green peas (from the freezer) added to it, served with rice cooked in some of the broth from the ham and split peas soup.  I usually cook rice in plain water, but, occasionally, especially if I have extra soup on hand, I like to cook it in some of the soup broth.  There are leftovers for tomorrow (Friday) and probably for Saturday, as well!  

On Thursday, I was grateful for:
- The sunshine during the day
- The rain in the evening
- Being able to video chat
- Being able to pay bills online
- Having a well-stocked freezer and pantry!

Thursday's joyful activities included video chatting with my step-aunt.

On Friday, I have an appointment with the oncology nurse practitioner for a routine check up, to go over the mammogram results, and to get my bone density injection.  Later in the evening, M will be here to tend to the garden.  

How was your Thursday?  What are your plans for Friday? 

What would you do if the grocery store needs to cancel your order due to insufficient stock?  Or you go to the store and the shelves are bare of the items you want?  Do you have a stock pile of sufficient food to get you through for at least a few days if not a week or two?